Xuanmiao Taoist Temple Guide

-Travel to Xuanmiao Taoist Temple

Situated in the Ancient City of Suzhou, the Xuanmiao Taoist Temple is a keyhistorical monument under state production. First constructed in 276, or the second year of the Xianning region period of the Western Jin Dynasty, the temple got its name because of the bustling Guanqian Street nearby. The Sanqing (Pure Trinity) Hall, the main hall in the temple, is the only wood-structure architecture of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) in China. The stone tablet inscribed with the image of Lao Zi, founder of Taoism, is acclaimed as the “three-best tablet” because it contains the painting by Wu Daozi, Sage in Chinese Painting of the Tang Dynasty; an inscription by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty; and a calligraphic work by Yan Zhengqing, a celebrated calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty. The Taoist music played in the Xuanmiao Temple, known as the “Celestial Music of Old Suzhou”, has been named the “national intanbible cultural heritage”, and the flying cymbal skills on the verge of extinction performed by the Taoists in the temple are known as the “unique skill of China”.